General info

The T-34E in the Garage.

The T-34E is a gift Rank II Soviet medium tank with a battle rating of 4.0 (AB/RB) and 3.7 (SB). It was introduced in Update 1.41 as a bundle vehicle until it was removed from the Gaijin store in November 2016.

The main purpose, usage and tactics recommendations

General play style

This is a mix of T-34 1941 and T-34 1942 with additional applique armor added to it. This additional applique armor is not equally distributed and this must be taken into account when using this tank. The additional applique armor is added around most of the turret and sides of the hull. This placement of the additional armor has a great effect on optimal play style for this tank. Since almost all of the turret has additional applique armor on it, don't be as afraid to show your turret since it can take a hit from long range from guns of equal or lower BR. The additional applique armor does a good job of covering the weak spots of the turret and greatly increases your survivability. The additional applique armor on the hull is only on the sides, creating an interesting situation where your side armor is better then your front armor. This can be a good thing since as a T-34 you will find yourself flanking a large amout of the time to take advantage of your great maneuverability. However, this additional side armor does not mean you can take shots directly in the side so be careful. The equal protection on sides and front makes angling your armor to maximum it's effect a easy task, just point the corner of your tank towards the enemy and feel safe knowing you are getting the best possible protection. This tank gets no more front protection then a T-34 1942 and has almost all the same weak spots in the front hull. Try not to face directly at an enemy, since your armor is good but not impenetrable. The one place additional armor is added on the front of the hull is the machine-gun port, which has had its armor increased to 65mm. This is not a well known feature and people might think it is a weak spot. Though this might be an error in its current armor since the 65mm machine-gun port did not appear until the 85mm T-34s and had a different look to them.

Vehicle characteristics

Tactics

The play style of this tank is similar to the KV-1; and if are are use to the KV-1 you will understand how play this tank and how it changes depending on what enemies it faces (how "nice" the matchmaker was to you).

If at top BR(good matchmaking):
Then play like a heavy tank, you can tank shots and return fire just don't forget to angle your armor.If at mid range BR:
Can still tank a shot or two but you must be angled for this to happenIf at bottom BR (bad matchmaking):
Flank as much as possible and thank the gods of RNG for every shot you bounce

As the tank is surrounded by the eskrani, it provides additional protection where they are on the sides of the hull and turret. The front of the tank is unprotected by these extra armor however.

Engine & mobility

Weight: 30.6 ton

Max Speed: 48 km/hStock

Engine Power: 775 hp @ 1800 rpm

Power-to-Weight Ratio: 25.33 hp/ton

Maximum Inclination: 36°

Upgraded

Engine Power: 954 hp @ 1800 rpm

Power-to-Weight Ratio: 31.18 hp/ton

Maximum Inclination: 43°

Weight: 30.6 ton

Max Speed: 43 km/hStock

Engine Power: 442 hp @ 1800 rpm

Power-to-Weight Ratio: 14.44 hp/ton

Maximum Inclination: 40°

Upgraded

Engine Power: 500 hp @ 1800 rpm

Power-to-Weight Ratio: 16.34 hp/ton

Maximum Inclination: 41°

Weight: 30.6 ton

Max Speed: 43 km/hStock

Engine Power: 442 hp @ 1800 rpm

Power-to-Weight Ratio: 14.44 hp/ton

Maximum Inclination: 40°

Upgraded

Engine Power: 500 hp @ 1800 rpm

Power-to-Weight Ratio: 16.34 hp/ton

Maximum Inclination: 41°

Modules and improvements

As a premium tank all upgrades are already unlocked. The "Mark of Distinction" can be earned, allowing for four decals to be employed without having a premium account.

Tier

Mobility

Protection

Firepower

I

Tracks

Parts

Horizontal drive, BR-350SP

II

Suspension, Brake system

FPE

Adjustment of fire, BR-350B (MD-5 fuse)

III

Filters

Crew replenishment

Elevation mechanism, BR-350P

IV

Transmission, Engine

Artillery support, BP-350A, D-350A

History of creation and combat usage

The T-34 was beginning to become the main tank of the Soviet Army by 1941, however the initiation of Operation Barbarossa by the Germans postponed most manufacturing deadlines due to the relocation of various factories to the Ural Mountains to keep them safe from the Germans. During the movement, only the Dzherzhinski Tractor Factory in Stalingrad (STZ) stayed in production and produced most of the T-34s during the reloacation.

To increase the survivability of the tanks, the T-34 design in the STZ factory was up-armored by use of applique armor plates. These applique armor variants of the T-34 were called T-34E, with "E" meaning ekranami translates to "with screens" in Russian. These tanks were given applique armor throughout the entire vehicle, on all sides of the turret, one the front, on the sides, and even side skirts on the tracks. Some of the applique armor was placed in a way to act as spaced armor against enemy fire, which proved quite effective against the Panzer III's 50 mm KwK 39 cannon where the armor applied were on areas once vulnerable on the T-34 to the cannon. However, it was found that this additional armor did not help the T-34 against larger calibers such as the 75 mm PaK 40 and the 88 mm FlaK cannons. Due to the gradually growing number of tanks with the 75 mm and 88 mm, such as the upgunned Panzer IV and the Tiger I that could easily destroy the T-34 even with the armor application, the armor configuration was not placed into mass production and thus only the testing batch of 47 units were made from the design.

However, one armor applique model produced in STZ did see a more widespread use in the production line, this was due to not drastically changing the design and only focusing on front armor protection by welding 15 mm of armor onto the front hull, thus minimizing weight gain by only focusing on the area most expected to be hit. These T-34s saw a more widespread use and have photographs showing it being used in the Leningrad Front.